Bill > A2909

Introduced Session

This bill requires the State to reimburse counties for costs paid for maintenance of county patients in State psychiatric hospitals who are eligible for federal Medicare or Medicaid coverage. Under current law, counties are not liable for the costs of maintenance of county patient in State psychiatric facilities if those patients are eligible for federal Medicare or Medicaid coverage. However, an audit by the Office of the State Auditor of Ancora Psychiatric Hospital, issued September 3, 2014, identified nearly $2 million in potential revenue from the federal Medicare program that was not claimed by the hospital. The sponsor's intent is to reduce property taxes. Because counties must rely on property tax revenue to pay for their portion of the costs of supporting patients in psychiatric hospitals, reducing the counties' burden may allow counties to reduce property taxes.

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Ronald Dancer (R)*, 

Introduced, Referred to Assembly Human Services Committee (on 02/16/2016)